LATEST | Ariel Castro indicted by grand jury

CLEVELAND -- Ariel Castro, 52, the man accused of kidnapping three women and holding them captive and sexually abusing them for a decade in his Cleveland house, was indicted late Friday afternoon.

The 142-page indictment is out.

A Cuyahoga County Grand Jury has returned a 329-count indictment against Ariel Castro, Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Timothy J. McGinty confirmed.

The indictments cover only the period from August of 2002, when the first of the three women discovered in his Seymour Avenue house last month disappeared, until February of 2007.

Castro was indicted for two acts of aggravated murder -- for purposely and with prior calculation and design causing the unlawful termination of another's pregnancy, as covered by Sections 2903.01(A) and (B) of the Ohio Revised Code.

He was also indicted on 139 counts of rape, 177 counts of kidnapping, seven counts of gross sexual imposition, three counts of felonious assault and one count of possession of criminal tools. He will be arraigned on those charges next week and a trial judge will be assigned at that time.

Upon hearing news that indictments have been handed down against Ariel Castro, Jim Wooley, the attorney for Amanda Berry and Gina DeJesus, and Kathy Joseph, the attorney for Michelle Knight, issued this statement:

"We have a great legal system plus confidence and faith in the prosecutor's office and its decisions. Now, we need to stand back and let the judicial process unfold."

It's been one month and a day since Amanda Berry, Berry's daughter, Gina DeJesus and Michelle Knight escaped from his Seymour Avenue home, saying that they had been kept there

According to the indictment, Knight had four pregnancies with Castro under the period of the indictment.

Knight was abducted on Aug. 22, 2002 and he physically restrained her in the upstairs part of the house, the indictment reads.

Later that day, he took her into the basement of the home and chained her to a pole. Castro first raped Knight the next day, according to the indictment.

She became pregnant the first time between September and December 2002.

Berry was abducted on April 21, 2003. He taped her legs and mouth. He also raped Berry that day after she attempted to escape, according to the indictment.

Castro then chained her to a pole in the basement and placed a motorcycle helmet on her head. The next day, he chained Berry to a heater in a bedroom for a time, according to the indictment.

DeJesus was abducted on Apr 2, 2004. Castro feloniously assaulted her with a pillow that day and sexually assaulted her in an upstairs bathroom, according to the indictment.

Castro then deceived her into entering the basement where he physically restrained her with chains and tape.

Sometime between Aug. 2005 and Oct. 31, 2005, Castro took both Knight and Berry to his garage, where he chained them to the inside of a van for sexual purposes, according to the indictment. He then took them back into the house.

"Today's indictments represent a first major step in the criminal justice process," said McGinty.

"Our investigation continues, and we will present our findings to the grand jury.'"

When the indictment process is complete, the County Prosecutor's Capital Review Committee will consider whether this case is appropriate to attach a death penalty specification.

The protocol for making that evaluation was posted on the web site of this office on May 21, 2013.

He has been in the Cuyahoga County Jail since his arrest on May 6. He was charged on May 8.